Button loop



jufly 4, 1 933 H ELWELL 1,916,829

BUTTON LOOP Filed July 16, 1931 Patented July 4, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFKIE GEORGE HENRY ELWELL NEVJ HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOE T0 THE WIRE NOVELTY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF WEST HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPO- Burr-on LOOP Application filed July 16,

This invention relates to button loops adapted for use on looped garmcntstraps to be suspended therefrom in readiness to be clipped over a button provided by the garment to be thereby supported, the invention more especially relating to that class of button loops providing a laterally expansible member including a button-receiving loop and a nori'nal lycontracted throat portion, in connection with a' depending rigid member providing a button-retaining loop into which the shank of the button, over which the button-receiving loop has been clipped, may be urged and reta ned against withdrawal e2:- cepting as it may be first returned through the expansible throat portion to the buttonreceivingloop. I

The objects of the invention are to provide a two-part button loop with an assembling means permitting the lateral expansion of one loop and maintaining the other loop in a common plane with the expansible loop; and to provide a laterally expansible portion of a button loop with a rigid sheet metal button-retaining loop so assembled thereon that both button parts are thereby maintained in a common plane and against relative axial bodily movement. Vith these and other objects in view as may become apparent from the within disclosures, the invention consists not only of the particular form herein pointed out and illustrated in the drawing, but readily admits of certain modification within the scope of what hereinafter may be claimed.

The character of the invention may be best understood by reference to one illustrative device embodying the invention and illustrated by the accompanying drawing in which the Figure 1 is an upright elevation of the device in a normal condition; the Figure 2 is a side elevation of the device; the Figure 3 is an upright elevation of the device in an expanded condition; and the Figure 4 is a fragmentary detail of the Figure 2.

The device about to be disclosed is an improvement on devices already known to the art, as disclosed for instance by the Patent Number 961,718 issued to C. E. Howe June .5 14, 1910, on a two-part button loop so joined 1931. Serial No. 551,156,

as to form a natural spring which opens out readily while the button is being inserted and springs back instantly to hold the but ton when in place, but such a type of button loop permits the swinging of one part upon the other in opposite directions. While this type of button loop has many points in its favor, yet in stacking overalls equipped therewith there is the danger of the buttonretaining loop part being caught in the stack at right angles to the other part of the button loop and thus threaten to puncture the material pressed down thereon; Referring more particularly to the drawing, the button loop as illustrated comprises in part a laterally expansible member made from a single piece of wire a middle portion of which is bent to provide the suspension loop lhaving the horizontal bar 2 and the depending arms 8 and 4 cooperatingly bent to provide the button-receiving loop 5 and the contract ed throat portion 6, the wire terminals 7 and 8 being bent laterally outward out of alignment, one with the other, at different angles, and each then looped backwardly against an arm 8 or l to protect the wire ends and lend a finished appearance to that part of the device, but these looped portions of the terminals 7 and 8 may be omitted, if desired, and

the terminal ends upset instead. The other part of the device is preferably made of flat wire or sheet-metal, but this part may be made of wire, round in cross-section, provided that both of the extremities of such wire are flattened for a purpose about to be explained. This part is formed to provide a button-retaining loop 9 of which each of the flat extremities is formed to provide the sleeves 10 and 11, each loosely surrounding a terminal 7 or 8 at its outer end, the rigid button-retaining loop 9 being thus mounted upon the laterally expansible part of the de vice in bodily axial alignment, that is an inraginary center line of one loop being the center line of the other loop. The flat extremities providing the sleeves l0 and 11, as aforesaid, each being less in width than the length of the wire terminal 7 or 8 so that a sliding movement of each of the wire terminals 7 and 8 may be had within the sleeves 10 and 11,

the button loop parts, and at the same time,"

I to permit the natural lateral sliding movement aforesaid, but, to maintain the desired rigidity of the assembled parts, the relative angle of the axes of the Wire terminals 7 and 8, and the sleeves l0 and 11, must be limited to substantially prevent axial bodily movements of the parts by cam action upon the lateral expansion of the expansible part of the device, and to prevent a downward axial stress, imparted to the retaining loop 9, operating by cam action the contracted throat portion 6 to an expanded condition and thus defeating the purpose of the button loop.

The shank S of a button in passing through the throat portion 6 expands that portion as illustrated by the Figure 3, the terminals 7 and 8 sliding laterally outward within their respective sleeves 10 and 11, but upon the seating of the shank S within the button-retaining loop 9, as illustrated by the Figure 1, the tension of the resilient wire arms 3 and 4 slidingly return the terminals 7 and 8 through the rigidly spaced sleeves 10 and 11,

respectively, said sleeves normally lying at the outer ends of the terminals 7 and 8, and the retaining loop 9 being constantly maintained Within the plane of the resilient part of the device, as illustrated by the Figure 2, regardless to the expanding or contracting condition of the resilient member.

I claim:

A button loop comprising a wire member of which a middle portion of a piece of round wire is bent to provide a suspension loop having depending spring arms adapted for lateral movements and formed to together provide a button-receiving loop having a contracted portion and wire terminals bent in substantially opposite directions, and a rigid button-retaining member having fiat extremities formed to provide sleeves for the holding and snug lateral movement therein of said wire terminals only along arcs described by said terminals upon the lateral movement of said arms, the relative direc tions, one to the other, of each terminal-holding course through said sleeves being such that said members are thereby held against relative pivotal movement and said rigid member being held against substantial axial movement and permitting only the lateral movement of said Wire terminals toward and away from each other in substantially opposite directions.

GEORGE HENRY ELWELL; 

